Talk about stirring up support – and a bit of controversy.

President Donald Trump is selling branded plastic straws to help generate campaign funds. It’s a promotional products-driven marketing move that takes aim at liberal political rivals, while also seeking to cater to the sensibilities of the chief executive’s base.

Laser-engraved with “Trump,” the straws come in packets of 10 for $15. “Liberal paper straws don’t work,” a product description says.

Across the U.S. and internationally, a growing number of governing bodies are looking to ban or restrict use of disposable plastic products, like single-use plastic bags and straws. While both products are technically recyclable, they generally end up in the trash or strewn about as litter, environmentalists argue. The plastics cause pollution and endanger wildlife – a belief held by the (usually Democrat/liberal) legislators that have supported bans and prohibitions on the products. Paper straws and bags have been put forward as alternatives.

Still, Trump recently said the straws aren’t an issue governing bodies should be taking time to focus on. “I do think we have bigger problems than plastic straws," he said last week.

"I do think we have bigger problems than plastic straws," Pres. Trump says. "You have a little straw. But what about the plates, the wrappers and everything else that are much bigger, and they're made of the same material?" https://t.co/NkJuIoh4fP pic.twitter.com/La6uTTpmeH

— ABC News (@ABC) July 19, 2019

Critics say Trump’s straws make light of pressing environmental problems. “The vast majority of plastic straws are not recycled in the U.S., which means they end up incinerated, piling up in landfills, or polluting our oceans,” Greenpeace Oceans Campaign Director John Hocevar told Newsweek.

Regardless of your opinion on the president, his politics and/or the straw ban debate, Trump’s logoed straws are potentially interesting from a promo products perspective. They demonstrate how a seemingly innocuous item, positioned in the right context and selected with one’s audience firmly in mind, can be a powerful marketing tool.

Despite costing $1.50 per straw, the $15 packets were selling strongly.

We have sold more than 140,000 straws. That is over $200,000 raised.

More than half of all Straw purchasers were BRAND NEW small dollar donors.

Amazing!

— Brad Parscale (@parscale) July 22, 2019